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Research

27,380 Alzheimer's and dementia studies in plain English, each scored out of 100.

Find studies

Showing 1–25 of 456 studies in Brain scans and imaging · free to read (page 1 of 19) · 27,380 in the whole library · How the 0–100 score works

Browse by subject, author or institution

Each number is how many studies that link shows, with your other filters kept.

Other subjects

Authors

Names as each record prints them; the same person can appear under two spellings.

Institutions

From OpenAlex; 12,859 studies have no institution on record and are not counted here.

What “Brain scans and imaging” covers

Brain scans and imaging — MRI, PET and other scans: what they show, how early, and how reliably.

A note on reading research. One study is rarely the final word.

We try to note the size of a study, whether it was in humans or animals, and how early-stage the finding is. If a summary here doesn't make that clear, treat it with extra caution and check the original source.

Spatial patterns of neuroimaging biomarker change in individuals from families with autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease: a longitudinal study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 77 out of 100. The Lancet. Neurology 2018-02-01

We found a sequence to pathological changes, with rates of Aβ deposition in mutation carriers being significantly different from those in non-carriers first (across regions that showed a significant difference, at a mean of 18·9 years [SD 3·3] before expected onset), followed by hypometabolism (14·1 years [5·1] before expected onset), and lastly structural decline (4·7 years [4·2] before expected onset). 2 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 346 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Sex Differences in Longitudinal Tau-PET in Preclinical Alzheimer Disease: A Meta-Analysis

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 76 out of 100. JAMA neurology 2025-03-03

Mounting evidence in adults without AD indicates that females exhibit higher tau deposition than age-matched males, particularly in the setting of elevated β-amyloid (Aβ), but the evidence for sex differences in tau accumulation rates is inconclusive. 5 key findings →

Design: meta-analysis Participants: 1,376 Evidence: high

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Brain and blood metabolite signatures of pathology and progression in Alzheimer disease: A targeted metabolomics study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 73 out of 100. PLoS medicine 2018-01-25

We found that distinct sphingolipid species including sphingomyelin (SM) with acyl residue sums C16:0, C18:1, and C16:1 (SM C16:0, SM C18:1, SM C16:1) and hydroxysphingomyelin with acyl residue sum C14:1 (SM (OH) C14:1) were consistently associated with severity of AD pathology at autopsy and AD progression across prodromal and preclinical stages. 5 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 44 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Association Between Elevated Brain Amyloid and Subsequent Cognitive Decline Among Cognitively Normal Persons

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 73 out of 100. JAMA 2017-06-01

Among the 445 participants (243 with normal amyloid, 202 with elevated amyloid), mean (SD) age was 74.0 (5.9) years, mean education was 16.4 (2.7) years, and 52% were women. 2 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 243 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

CSF biomarkers of neuroinflammation and cerebrovascular dysfunction in early Alzheimer disease

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 73 out of 100. Neurology 2018-07-27

Neuroinflammation and cerebrovascular dysfunction are early events occurring already at presymptomatic stages of AD and contribute to disease progression. 5 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 508 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

The Alzheimer's disease neuroimaging initiative (ADNI): MRI methods

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 72 out of 100. Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging 2008-02-26

The Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) is a longitudinal multisite observational study of healthy elders, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and Alzheimer's disease. 5 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Soluble TREM2 in CSF and its association with other biomarkers and cognition in autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease: a longitudinal observational study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 71 out of 100. The Lancet. Neurology 2022-04-01

Although studies in animal models suggest that TREM2 is protective against Alzheimer's pathology, its effect on tau pathology and its potential beneficial role in people with Alzheimer's disease is still unclear. 4 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 155 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Tau Positron Emission Tomography for Predicting Dementia in Individuals With Mild Cognitive Impairment

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 70 out of 100. JAMA neurology 2024-08-01

In the discovery cohort, the mean (SD) age was 70.9 (8.5) years, 191 (58%) were male, the mean (SD) MMSE score was 27.1 (1.9), and 110 individuals with MCI (33%) converted to dementia (71 to AD dementia). 4 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 110 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Effects of the Insulin Sensitizer Metformin in Alzheimer Disease: Pilot Data From a Randomized Placebo-controlled Crossover Study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 69 out of 100. Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2017-04-01

Epidemiological studies have identified a robust association between type II diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer disease (AD), and neurobiological studies have suggested the presence of central nervous system insulin resistance in individuals with AD. 3 key findings →

Evidence: high

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Disease staging of Alzheimer's disease using a CSF-based biomarker model

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 69 out of 100. Nature aging 2024-03-21

Biological staging of individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) may improve diagnostic and prognostic workup of dementia in clinical practice and the design of clinical trials. 4 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 426 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Random Forest Algorithm for the Classification of Neuroimaging Data in Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 68 out of 100. Frontiers in aging neuroscience 2017-10-06

Twelve articles-published between the 2007 and 2017-have been included in this systematic review after a quantitative and qualitative selection. 4 key findings →

Design: systematic review Evidence: high

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Diagnostic Performance of RO948 F 18 Tau Positron Emission Tomography in the Differentiation of Alzheimer Disease From Other Neurodegenerative Disorders

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 68 out of 100. JAMA neurology 2020-08-01

In this study, elevated [18F]RO948 SUVRs were most often seen among Aβ-positive cases, which suggests that [18F]RO948 has high specificity for AD-type tau and highlights its potential as a diagnostic marker in the differential diagnosis of AD. 4 key findings →

Design: cross-sectional Participants: 257 Evidence: low

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Midlife systemic inflammatory markers are associated with late-life brain volume: The ARIC study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 68 out of 100. Neurology 2017-11-01

Our prospective findings provide evidence for what may be an early contributory role of systemic inflammation in neurodegeneration and cognitive aging. 3 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 1,633 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Association of Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging Signs With Cognitive Outcomes in Persons With Nonimpaired Cognition and Mild Cognitive Impairment

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 68 out of 100. JAMA network open 2019-05-03

In this study, lower AD signature region volumes, brain microhemorrhages, higher WMH volumes, and infarcts were risk factors associated with dementia in older community-based residents. 4 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 1,553 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Tau PET patterns mirror clinical and neuroanatomical variability in Alzheimer’s disease

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 68 out of 100. Brain 2016-03-08

Voxel-wise contrasts against controls (at P < 0.05 family-wise error corrected) showed that (18)F-AV1451 and (18)F-FDG patterns in patients with posterior cortical atrophy ('visual variant of Alzheimer's disease', n = 7) specifically targeted the clinically affected posterior brain regions, while (11)C-PiB bound diffusely throughout the neocortex. 5 key findings →

Participants: 20 Evidence: low

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Associations between tau, Aβ, and cortical thickness with cognition in Alzheimer disease

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 67 out of 100. Neurology 2019-01-09

Our findings suggest that tau PET is more sensitive than Aβ PET and measures of cortical thickness for detecting early cognitive changes in preclinical AD. 2 key findings →

Design: cross-sectional Participants: 106 Evidence: low

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

The cortical signature of prodromal AD: regional thinning predicts mild AD dementia

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 67 out of 100. Neurology 2008-12-24

Thinning in specific cortical areas known to be affected by Alzheimer disease (AD) is detectable in individuals with questionable AD dementia (QAD) and predicts conversion to mild AD dementia. 3 key findings →

Design: longitudinal study Participants: 49 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Bile acid synthesis, modulation, and dementia: A metabolomic, transcriptomic, and pharmacoepidemiologic study

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 67 out of 100. PLoS medicine 2021-05-27

We tested whether dysregulation of cholesterol catabolism, through its conversion to primary bile acids (BAs), was associated with dementia pathogenesis. 5 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 141 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Etiology of White Matter Hyperintensities in Autosomal Dominant and Sporadic Alzheimer Disease

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 67 out of 100. JAMA neurology 2023-12-01

Data from 3960 MRI sessions among 1141 participants were included: 252 pathogenic variant carriers from DIAN (mean [SD] age, 38.4 [11.2] years; 137 [54%] female), 571 older adults from ADNI (mean [SD] age, 72.8 [7.3] years; 274 [48%] female), and 318 older adults from HABS (mean [SD] age, 72.4 [7.6] years; 194 [61%] female). 3 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 1,141 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

Association of Elevated Amyloid and Tau Positron Emission Tomography Signal With Near-Term Development of Alzheimer Disease Symptoms in Older Adults Without Cognitive Impairment

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 66 out of 100. JAMA neurology 2022-10-01

Among 580 participants (PREVENT-AD, 128; HABS, 153; AIBL, 48; Knight ADRC, 251), mean (SD) age ranged from 67 (5) to 76 (6) years across cohorts, with between 55% (137/251) and 74% (95/128) female participants. 2 key findings →

Design: cohort study Participants: 580 Evidence: moderate

Full summary, score breakdown and related studies → Original source Free full text

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Where “Free full text” comes from

Free full text links and the Full text may need a subscription label come from Unpaywall, Europe PMC and OpenAlex records of free copies, checked 10 Oct 2026. A study with neither is unknown, not paywalled.

How the 0–100 score works — and why some entries are capped

This is alzhub's own score. It is not an official metric, not an impact factor, and no journal, publisher or ranking body endorses it. We built it so that a reader who is not a scientist can tell a landmark trial from a conference abstract without having to already know the difference. Every point comes from one of 20 components, all of them printed on the study itself, so you can disagree with our arithmetic rather than having to trust the total.

  • Journal tier up to 10 pts
  • Journal's citation record up to 4 pts
  • Study design up to 12 pts
  • Strength of evidence up to 5 pts
  • Peer-review validation up to 10 pts
  • How recent up to 5 pts
  • Sample size up to 4 pts
  • Effect reported up to 3 pts
  • Studied in people up to 3 pts
  • Randomised / blinded up to 2 pts
  • Times cited up to 7 pts
  • Citations per year up to 5 pts
  • Impact for its field and year up to 6 pts
  • Cited by studies here up to 6 pts
  • Still being cited up to 4 pts
  • Senior author's track record up to 4 pts
  • Institution's track record up to 3 pts
  • Multi-centre collaboration up to 3 pts
  • Indexed in PubMed up to 2 pts
  • Free to read up to 2 pts

Journals are placed in ordered tiers, never given a numeric impact factor — we could not verify current impact factors from a source we control, and an invented one would be worse than none. Tier 1 is the top-tier general journals (NEJM, The Lancet, JAMA, Nature, Science, Nature Medicine); tier 2 is the leading specialty journals; tier 3 is every other peer-reviewed journal. A separate part scores how much the journal's own papers are cited, which tells the tier-3 journals apart.

Two rules we don't bend. First, we never fill in a missing value: if a record does not state a sample size or a design, that component scores zero, and if we simply have no data for a part, such as a citation count, that part is left out and the study is scored on the parts we could check. The study card says which. Second, anything that is not a peer-reviewed article is capped at 16/100 and carries a warning chip — so a conference abstract or a company press release can never outrank a peer-reviewed paper, no matter how good it looks.

We rank a rigorous null result — a good trial showing that something does not work — above an early positive finding. Someone deciding whether to buy a supplement is served by that, and the rigour is already counted by the design and journal components.

The score is computed from the published data alone and is reproducible: the same file always yields the same numbers.

See the whole rubric drawn out → — four charts covering all 27,380 studies: how the scores are spread and where the cap bites, which of the 20 components the library is strong and weak on, which subjects rest on stronger evidence, and what kinds of study each subject is actually built from.

What this library is — and isn't

This is a large sample of the Alzheimer's literature, not an exhaustive index of it. It holds 27,380 records, built mostly from automated pulls of Europe PMC (60.6% of the library) and OpenAlex (18.6%), plus smaller pulls from PubMed, Crossref and medRxiv. If a study, a drug, or a finding isn't here, that is not evidence it doesn't exist in the literature — it may simply not have been pulled in yet.

1,032 records (3.8% of the library) are not peer-reviewed — 962 of those are preprints posted before any journal review, and the rest are conference abstracts, regulatory notices and reports. Every study card on this page states its status plainly, and the score above is capped for anything that isn't a peer-reviewed article.

See the full, machine-readable breakdown of this library's coverage →

Newest studies, as a dated timeline →    Atom feed